JOE Camilleri is overwhelmed. Fifty years after starting out in the music business, the rock veteran's latest release, Saint Georges Road, has garnered critical acclaim and notched up a solid handful of debut entries in the ARIA charts.
The album also debuted at #2 on the Australian Blues and Roots Airplay Chart.
On hearing the chart news, he said he was amazed at the support for the album considering the current landscape for artists releasing new music.
"We haven't been able to tour and 40 per cent of the country is in lockdown. So for fans to order online from their favourite record store really resonates with me and makes the chart debuts even sweeter," he said.
The first single from the album, Livin' Like Kings, debuted at #1 on the AMRAP Metro chart. The second, released this week, is the blues/gospel-flavoured Revolutionary Blues.
Saint Georges Road is the 19th studio album from Joe's band, The Black Sorrows,.
As if to come full circle for this milestone release, Joe reunited with Grammy-nominated Peter Solley - producer of Jo Jo Zep and the Falcons' breakthrough album, Screaming Targets (1979), which featured Joe's first Top 40 hits, Hit & Run and Shape I'm In.
Saint Georges Road showcases 11 original tracks written by Joe and his long-time writing partner Nick Smith.
Before they embarked on the project, Peter asked Joe one question, "What kind of record do you want to make?" Joe replied, "A good one."
The Black Sorrows continue to be one Australia's most prolific and enduringly popular bands and are renowned for their high-energy live shows, musicianship and infectious, roots-soaked blues rock.
They've sold more than two million albums to date and won an ARIA Award for Best Group.
Joe has been at the forefront of Australian music for decades as the leader of Jo Jo Zep and The Falcons and later The Black Sorrows. Other radio anthems include Chained To The Wheel, Harley & Rose and Never Let Me Go.
Joe is an ARIA Hall of Famer and at 73, a rock 'n' roll lifer. Not ready to hang up his boots yet, he's working on his 51st album.